Day 2 - Valley of Fire

If a picture is worth a thousand words, what is a video worth? Valley of Fire: http://youtu.be/s2GQR-Os2uc

The advantage of camping over hoteling is that you start close. I awoke just before dawn and drove to the sunrise at Calville Bay on Lake Mead (pic). The drive around Lake Mead is simply breathtaking through the desert mountains. I felt like I was in a movie about a desert road extending to the horizon. Photos didn't do it justice. I wound my way around the large lake through the mountains and in to each bay in order of appearance. A sea plane was banking around the moutains and landing in the last bay just when I arrived.

On to Valley of Fire, a Nevada State Park known for it's red canyons and geological formations. 45 movies have a scene shot there every year. I hiked six trails in the park, seeing a huge iguana on one trail (pic, for bill). The trails were sandy and hard to walk (many people were in flip flops), but the ending views were sensational. The video capture the feeling best, but i threw in three glamour shots from different trails (Mouse's Tank, Rainbow Vista and Prospect Trail).

I learned from my mistake last night and left the park well before sundown so I could find an appropriate camping spot or hotel. I decided to camp as there was Bureau of Land Management land (free camping) just outside the park with the Valley views (see black van and right middle of the last photo). I managed to shower and shave at this secluded spot and awoke to an owl cooing.

I'm in Vegas now and am going to buy the van from Hertz at 10am and then pickup Roman and Page at Noon from the airpot. Then on to Zion.

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Day 171 - JMT Guitar Lake

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Day 172 - JMT Mount Whitney

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Day 170 - JMT Forrester Pass

The mountains had a surreal glow this morning as we climbed up towards the 13,200 foot high Forrester Pass. One of the wonderful things about the mountains is that they change appearance as the sun changes height, creating a movie-like experience as you walk. I felt so free and happy this morning--just in love with this light. After sixty minutes of walking, we stopped in the first sunny spot we could find to thaw out and rest. Another hiker came bustling up the trail behind us and stopped at the sunspot to shed a layer of clothing. Sly was a Canadian hiker, just turned 40, who seemed happy to see us. We struck up a conversation about travels and when we pushed off Sly asked if he could join us. We said yes of course. We hiked quickly up the trail, reaching a high plateau with epic alpine views. Selfie time! We skirted around a high alpine lake and then went up a ridge line ever further higher. We were at 12,000+ feet now and the world began to look small yet vast.

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